Bellot Ensemble unveils debut album: ‘Cupid’s Ground Bass’
Bellot Ensemble marked the release of its debut album, Cupid’s Ground Bass (out now on First Hand Records), with a well-attended launch event at The Gallery at Tileyard, a sleek, acoustically-treated space near London’s King’s Cross.
The contemporary surroundings offered a strikingly modern counterpoint to the group’s immersion in 17th-century Italian music. Its acoustically treated space, fitted with a state-of-the-art Dolby Atmos system, allowed the ensemble’s new recording to be heard with unusual clarity and depth. Live performances, interspersed with a series of short, atmospheric films directed by Tom Guthrie, added a visual counterpoint to some of the tracks in the album, giving guests a fuller sense of Bellot's engaging and dramatic performing style.
Colleagues from Continuo Foundation, BBC Radio 3, the National Centre for Early Music, and the Royal College of Music joined supporters, friends and festival directors for an informal evening that mixed conversation with focused listening. The turnout reflected the interest the ensemble has generated since it was founded just two years ago, spurred on by funding from the Continuo Foundation, and by its appointment as BBC Radio 3’s New Generation Baroque Ensemble earlier this year.
The album centres on 17th-century Italian music and the many faces of love: erotic, tender, defiant and sometimes bleak. Arias by Strozzi, Cavalli and Monteverdi chart these emotional shifts, while instrumental works by Uccellini, Farina, Kapsberger and Biber provide contrast and momentum. Much of the repertoire is built on ground-bass patterns, which the ensemble uses as a unifying thread rather than a constraint, often enriching the textures with its own written-out diminutions and arrangements.
Founder and director of Bellot Ensemble, violinist Edmund Taylor, described the group’s working method in bringing little-known scores to life: ‘We return to the earliest manuscripts and prints wherever possible,’ he says. ‘It gives us a clearer picture of how the music functioned for performers of the time, and it informs the style we bring to it today.’
Early reactions to the new album highlight its refreshing directness and variety. Soprano Lucine Musaelian and tenor Kieran White deliver clear, expressive and sensual accounts of the vocal works, while instrumentalists Olivia Petryszak, Daniel Murphy and Taylor provide standout moments in little-known works by Uccellini, Kapsberger and Biber. The sequencing of vocal and instrumental tracks lends the album a natural pace and keeps its focus on emotional clarity and drama, beautifully captured by First Hand Records’ sound engineers.
Founder and CEO of Continuo Foundation, Tina Vadaneaux, said, ‘We are delighted to have funded the Bellot Ensemble’s landmark debut album. Cupid’s Ground Bass is a confident, thoughtfully shaped recording and encapsulates how strategic financial support can bring to the fore the talent and quality of young artists in the Early Music field.’
Cupid's Ground Bass is available to purchase from First Hand Records and to stream on all major digital platforms. Header photo credit: Ben Reason.